Quebec - LMIA and Work Permit related questions

Work Permits
1

Hello folks,

Hope everyone is doing well. Firstly, I’d like to thank everyone here for sharing their detailed experiences on almost everything related to Canada. It certainly has filled a lot of gaps in my future plans and added few more pointers as well :slight_smile:

I’m currently working in Chicago (US) and I’ve interviewed for a role in Montreal, QC. The potential employer has presence in Canada, US and India. I’m expecting the job offer soon. I have few questions regarding the processes and possible options. Please help me out with your experience, so I can negotiate the terms with the employer. (Note : I haven’t applied for EE yet)

  1. My 6 years in H1B including recapture is ending my May 2021 (GC process not started) and my extension is in progress since Sep 2020. Considering if I get the canada job offer, how long will it take for them to prepare and get an approved LMIA with current Covid situation, both best and worst case scenarios? Reason behind this question is, If there is an option for me to quit the job here, it will be easier than moving back to India and quit with prolonged notice period.

  2. Let’s say, I couldn’t get an approved LMIA before May 2021 and I’ve to move back to India, does the process change because of my location change? I noticed in the ca govt site, it takes different processing times for applying Work Permit from India and US. Is it applicable for Indian Citizen applying from US or India?

  3. Is it a good option to start working for them from India, if the employer agrees? I’m concerned about this because, the job offer will be for Canada and I want to know if anyone has faced similar situation, working from a different country until the work permit comes through.

  4. The Canada Govt site mentions that Intra Company Transfer requires One Year of Full Time employment with the company. Is there an workaround for this? I know it’s ambitious, I’m just looking for all the possible options. Knocking at all the doors!

  5. I know an LMIA approved job offer helps me with EE profile with additional points. But I’d like to know the vice versa, Will it will help the LMIA & Work Permit process, if I’ve an EE profile in the system?

I understand these questions can be answered by the company’s legal team and HR team. But, I would like your valuable inputs and experiences, so I’ll be in a better position to negotiate the terms and conditions of the offer, before reaching out to them with these questions.

Have a great day ahead!
Regards,
Jose G

1 Like
2

Hey Jose, Congrats on the potential Job offer. LMIA process in Quebec is a little lengthy and time-consuming - this is the impression I got when I was talking to the HR person from the Montreal-based start-up but every company is different in terms of their HR/immigration policy. Others can comment here for better insight. Please do share your journey once you get your Job Offer and work permit sorted out. Thank you!

3

Thank you for your response, @swamiom! I’ll definitely provide an update once I figure out this.

4

Hey @Jose were you able to get a work permit? If yes please share the details

5

Not yet @swamiom. Still working on it. Looking at alternate options as well, like EOR (Mobsquad) who has leverage with Canadian Government and could get Work permit quickly. Will update once I move ahead in the process.

1 Like
6

Thanks Jose. When I talked with the HR person from Montreal based company - she said it’s a kind of complex process in Quebec. This conversation with her happened when I cleared all the interview rounds. Someone in this community told that work permit in Quebec is like the I-140 process in the USA. Keep us posted.

7

@swamiom - My hiring manager told me the exact same thing about it being comparable to i140 process! And the EOR option didn’t work out, as 99% of them don’t support in Quebec because of these complexities. I’m looking at other possible options now.

8

Good luck Jose - I gave up on Quebec, searching for Jobs in other provinces - fingers crossed!

9

Good luck to you too! Keep me posted if any updates. I’ll let you know as well.